The situation in Bunkerville, Nev., seems to have deescalated, at least for the time being, who knows what the future fallout will be. Still local residents, ranchers and farmers have similar concerns about government over reach in the federally controlled lands of Pershing County.
"I have concerns of the federal government taking public land over trivial reasons. There's room for all of us; desert tortoise, sage grouse, cattle and people who just want to recreate on the land," said Pershing rancher Tom Moura.
Some ranchers contacted declined to comment about their concerns. One, who asked not to be named stated, "We have enough problems with BLM. Don't want to go on the record."
Does the Bureau of Land Management over step their authority? Do they manage the public lands of Nevada with the economy and public in mind? Or do they manage it in the interest of "big government"? The answer probably depends on which side of the fence you are on.
While the issue may have started with the desert tortoise in Bunkerville, some say it is really a play for power over public land. Bunkerville rancher Cliven Bundy claims when the desert tortoise was declared an endangered species in 1993 there were 52 ranchers in his area, all grazing their cattle on public land. He has said on multiple media outlets over the past week that over the last 20 years all of those ranchers have been put out of business; he is the "last man standing." He cites the reduction in the amount of cattle allowed to graze and finally the closure of the grazing land to protect the tortoise as the reason for his neighbors' demise.
Could that happen to Pershing County ranchers or ranchers in any of the northern Nevada counties, if the sage grouse is declared an endangered species? The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been required by a court order to make a decision on whether or not the sage grouse is endangered by September 2015. Agriculture proponents believe declaring the bird endangered could have a devastating effect on local producers.
"It would destroy the livelihood of a lot of ranchers," said Dave Sticks, chairman of the Nevada State Board of Agriculture and member of the Nevada Cattlemen's Association.
Sticks asserted that the organizations he represents do not advocate ranchers not paying their grazing fees, but the Bunkerville situation is bringing attention to the plight of ranchers dependent on public lands for grazing their cattle.
"If we can get the public to see what is going on, we can hopefully avoid what is happening to Cliven," Sticks said.
April 10, Bundy stated on the syndicated Josh Tolley radio show that he "fired the BLM" because they were not managing his public lands correctly.
"I paid grazing fees for them (BLM) to manage my, and your, public land. When they started mismanaging it, I fired them. I quit paying them to manage me out of business," Bundy said.
Bundy's main stance is that the federal government does not own the land, that it belongs to the State of Nevada; in particular, Clark County.
Another Pershing County rancher, Mike Stremler, said he has had to reduce his grazing herd by 50 percent because of the wild horses. Increased reduction because of sage grouse could devastate his Dixie Valley ranch, he said. Both Stremler and Sticks believe the science, used by FWS, to determine endangered species is not correct.
"We have studies now that indicate predators as the main cause of sage grouse decline," Stremler said.
Stremler, who is a member of the Nevada Land Management Task Force, said that 50 - 80 percent of sage grouse nests are being destroyed by ravens and not by cows.
Stremler gave a rundown on the economic fallout if the sage grouse were to be listed on the endangered list. If the rancher has to run less cattle, there are less cattle to auction; this causes the auction facility to lay-off people and possibly close down because it cannot afford to stay in business without the cattle. Less cattle at the auction means less cattle for the feed lots to buy, less cattle for it to take care of; then the feed lot lays off employees, buys less hay from local farmers and sells less meat to local meat packing companies. This hurts business for the local farmer and feed lot, putting both businesses at risk of closing. Then the meat packing companies have less meat to sell and have to charge higher prices to markets and restaurants. The price is passed on to the consumer and the public pays higher prices for their meat.
"All of these economic benefactors have the potential to go out of business because BLM cuts the amount of cows on the range," Stremler said.
Contact Alicia Craig at a.craig@winnemuccapublishing.net[[In-content Ad]]
